Lubricating ButtKicker Mini! Inside a ButtKicker Mini LFE and fixing a rattle!

[@SimRacingCorner]

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[@davidp2968]

Thanks for the video, I opened mine up also . I used a 5/32” Hex bit socket on a ratchet. Took it apart with ease.

[@Roostfactor1]

Or if you dont have a hex bit socket, you can use a small socket and an extension. Slide socket and extension on the allen wrench for leverage.

[@davidcolasante8173]

Thanks for the video. I use all the ButtKickers in a lab setting but only the large (11 lbs.) LFEs are ventillated. With prolonged sinewave input to the minis at 50 watts, I run into thermal cutoff in about 30 min. (my lab is about 65°F ). So, I've been wanting to open up my minis and advanced transducers and drill four 1/4" vent holes in the top and bottom aluminum caps. Thanks to you, I've got an idea what I'll be seeing. Vents should be OK for my lab use but under a dusty sofa could lead clogging. And yes, for vibration resistance, ButtKicker screws are glued in place - so they can be tough to get off.

[@rgemail]

I need to open up my BK LFE and see if I can fix the rattle. Trying to brainstorm a good endcap damping material that won't breakdown after millions of hits, haha. I hear about the enclosure noise so often I can't believe the company hasn't addressed it in the design yet.

[@LoneWolf2k4]

I finally worked on tuning my sim rig and setting it up properly since I renovated my basement. First issue was that my right side buttkicker rattled. It sounded a fragment of metal was bouncing inside the housing. I took the top off with a 3/16 hex impact bit and dropped the cylinder out of the sleeve just as you did. It was mostly dry, with the little bits of factory grease being sticky to the touch. I greased the housing with white lithium grease as you showed. Problem solved! Mine already had the rubber isolators on the end caps, so I didn't mess with the carpet pad hack.

[@czechmontana706]

Thx so much.i try it today .pre ordert the lithium grease and the rattling is away.best Video for me this year.thx qgain

[@SimRacingCorner]

Glad it helped

[@fondoo]

Those mini LFE are super powerful!!!

[@mcethos8678]

Good information. Thanks for sharing !👍

[@ghoste7546]

Thanks for opening it up! I thought inside was a uneven weight rotate by motor. So the rumble is caused by the cylinder moving up and down? Thanks!

[@mervyoung5397]

Hmmm... I've got a similar issue with a brand new Mini LFE. I think I'll return it. The other one is fine.

[@daemon3spade]

Now try the tests with adding different kinds of floor vibration dampers.

[@joeeez4]

What kind of lubrication did you use???

[@SimRacingCorner]

Lithium grease

[@domenicofranco6246]

Hello.great video,super helpfull.can u share your simhub 4 corner profile?ty

[@mick2d2]

Makes a great sound! 8)

[@roadi7]

use an allen head bit with a ratchet for more torque

[@2ndLastJedi]

How is the grease job lasting? Mine rattles badly between 15 to 30Hz below and above it is actually quiet but in that range it has metal clank sounds!!

[@SimRacingCorner]

It's fixed the side-to-side rattle I was getting, but I do get a clanking noise when it hits the ends on one of two shakers under my pedals. Not sure if it's the one I greased, I have 4 in total of these mini's. There is a possible mod to help this by sticking furniture felt pads on inside of the cap ends. This is something I will check out at some point and put together a before and after test in a video.

[@ParkerSayler]

There are 2 points to the rattling. There are rubber dampers that break free in the metal lids and then the rods need lubricated as indicated in this video. You can replace the rubber dampers with carpet padding or anything to damper the end of the rod. That will keep the rod from banging into the lids.

[@Schwing27]

Have you solved the rattling? Mine does it at around 30hz as well. It’s fine below and above that.

[@davidcolasante8173]

@@ParkerSayler You might try some Tub & Tile caulk. When it's partially set you can pressit into shape as desired. silicone caulk is the most durable & heat resistant. Wait 24 hours before reassembling the unit.

[@cajun94]

So I'm looking to put 4 of these on my rig to sim the 4 wheels aka chassis mode on some apps and i was really wondering if i should mount them further out the sides as to help feel the direction better. Thoughts in chassis setup placements?

[@SimRacingCorner]

Yes spacing them apart does help, however, vibrations do leak across so it's not quite an exact science that completely makes chassis mode perfect. I'm talking about left/right separation here, front/rear are far enough apart. Bass shakers also output noise in use so separating them does have the advantage of hearing the noise coming from which corner.

[@cajun94]

@@SimRacingCorner Thanks a lot for confirming my thoughts there. My rig allows me to slide my buttkicker bracket out the frame by like 8 inches or so. I feel that extra distance between them will greatly improve the feel. Keep up the great vids you helped me a lot over the last couple weeks.

[@sushiking56]

Hey man I have a question, how do i get these things to increase their frequency range for vibration feedback? They only seem to go off during very low frequency sounds. I used to have an aura bass-shaker, and when I played gears of war, i could feel the vibrations when i fire a machine gun but for my buttkicker, it doesn't go off at all. Any advice?

[@SimRacingCorner]

All bass shakers have their own effective frequency range so they are only active if the sound input frequency is within that. If your amp has EQ controls for adjusting the low/high cut you maybe be able to tune the audio to be more active on the bass shaker.

[@sushiking56]

@@SimRacingCorner okay thanks.

[@markpicturefilm]

interesting....:)

[@KingFischRacing]

These are cool but cost is high go for a Dayton audio one they r amazing

[@shaunellul1984]

Dayton are good units until the plastic suspension rings crack the tiny spider arms

[@vernfenton863]

Buttkickers are terrible overrated products. Well set up multiple transducer are much better and have more accurate tyre on tarmac feel.

[@davidcolasante8173]

It depends on what you're looking for. If you need lots of very low frequency (5-20Hz) ButtKickers can't be beat. Aura's & Dayton Audio fall off quickly under 40Hz. Also I beat hell out of my Buttkickers in a lab environment. Running continuous sinewaves at high power for up to an hour at a time. I do run into thermal cutoffs but when they cool down they bounce right back. I've also dropped one of my big LFEs 40" onto a concrete floor. A few of the heat sink fins chipped off but it runs just fine!